Wind Resource Assessment - Wind Resource Maps

Wind Resource Maps

Government agencies publish maps of estimated wind resources for most areas with active wind power development. Wind prospecting can begin with the use of such maps, but the lack of accuracy and fine detail make them useful only for preliminary selection of sites for collecting wind speed data. With increasing numbers of on-site measurements, as well as operating data from built wind farms, the accuracy of wind resource maps has improved over time. Maps are available as commercial products through resource consultants, or users of GIS software can make their own using publicly available GIS data such as the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory's High Resolution Wind Data Set . Although the accuracy has improved, it is unlikely that wind resource maps, whether public or commercial, will eliminate the need for on-site measurements for utility-scale development projects.